9/12/2011

Kill Squad (1982)

When ne’er do-wells from a rival electronics company (!) rape his wife
and put him in a wheelchair, Joseph Lawrence (presumably not the guy who
says “Whoa!” from the show Blossom), (Risk), assembles a multi-racial
“Kill Squad” to find the culprits and get revenge. He calls on his old
Vietnam buddies Larry (Glaude), Tommy (Fung), Arthur (Sabin), K.C.
(Johnson), Pete (Francisco Ramirez of Omega Cop, 1990 fame), and Alan (Bill
Cambra). Each bring their own special skills and talents to the table.
It turns out they’re on the hunt for the notorious Dutch (Mitchell). As
if this mission wasn’t dangerous enough, a mysterious assassin seems to
turn up everywhere they go and is attempting to pick them off one by
one. Will this particular “Kill Squad” be effective?

This very
enjoyable gem contains plenty of
funny and memorable nuggets that will surely satisfy anyone who loves
the “cheap and cheerful” drive-in action/martial arts style. Sure, the
punches and kicks don’t technically connect, and the non-actors
are...well...not actors, but who cares? The clothes, the music, the
decor, and the overall style is very fun and you really get into the
spirit. The great thing about movies in general is how they preserve on
film the styles of the time, and there is even a scene which shows a
movie poster for a long-forgotten adult film called Passion Procession.
If not for Kill Squad, we wouldn’t be bringing that movie - or at least
its title - up here today.

One of the best sequences of the film
is when the squad is being assembled. With a simple “Joseph needs you”,
every guy simply drops whatever they’re doing in their life and without
any questions or comments, agrees to go along for the ride. This
despite knowing all the (Jeff) Risks. The
movie gets better as it goes along, and one of the best things about
Kill Squad is not only the constant fights, but that EVERYBODY fights!
Random people at parties, armies of used car salesmen, everybody!
Somehow, in the wacky world of Kill Squad, every single person on earth
knows Martial Arts and is more than willing to use it. And everything
inbetween the fights serves the fight - no matter how absurd. That’s one
of the glorious things about this movie - it’s willing to do anything,
including breaking the rules, to satisfy the audience. God bless them.

As
stated earlier, the music, which is by Joseph Conlan, stands out, as
does the violence. Everything is cranked up here, and the effect is
winning. Fan favorite Cam Mitchell appears as the bad guy, and it would
have been nice if he had more screen time. That’s really the only mild
issue we could find with this great movie. It would make an excellent
double feature with Death Machines (1976).